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Posts Tagged Fire Chief Mitch Crocetti

A motion to place a bond referendum question for the Pingree Grove & Countryside Fire District on the April election ballot — for what would have been the fourth time — failed after the board was deadlocked and the trustee who could have cast the deciding vote was absent.

One trustee attempted to attend the Thursday meeting via phone because he’s in a rehabilitation facility. On the phone, he repeatedly said he supported placing the referendum question on the ballot, but after about half an hour — and before the board took a vote — he had to go because he wasn’t feeling well.

The plan on the table Thursday, proposed by Fire Chief Mitch Crocetti, was to ask voters to borrow $7.5 million to replace two of the district’s three fire stations. The district also would have used $2.6 million in reserves and any proceeds from selling the old stations. Voters previously rejected requests to borrow $8.5 million in November 2018, March 2018 and April 2017.

The plan has been to sell Station 2 on Rippburger Road and Station 4 on Plank Road and build new stations on Highland Avenue just east of Coombs Road and on Dittman Road about one-third mile south of Plato Road. The land on Dittman Road was purchased last year.

However, last month an estimate showed higher-than-anticipated costs, with building and site work for the Dittman Road station up to at least $10.85 million according to a second opinion.

The chief consulted with officials from the South Elgin and Countryside Fire Protection District who told him that bids for two new fire stations planned in that district are coming in under $10 million.

Some speculated the higher cost could be because South Elgin has municipal water, not well water like Pingree Grove, or due to differences in proposed building height.

Another referendum question could go on the ballot no earlier than the spring 2020 election. The board rejected the chief’s proposal last year to obtain architectural plans before the referendum. He plans to pursue that again in order to narrow down precise costs.

The board of the Pingree Grove & Countryside Fire District delayed a vote on placing a referendum question on the April election ballot to hear details regarding a cost analysis and alternate proposal by one trustee. Trustee Todd Harris said an architectural/engineering estimate he obtained on his own shows construction costs would exceed the projected amount by several million dollars. He favors an alternate plan of building only one new station, on Dittman Road, and remodeling Station 4 on Plank Road asking to delay the vote until a special meeting can be held sometime the second week of January, and the board agreed. Jan. 14 is the deadline for local governments to adopt resolutions regarding binding referendum questions.

The plan would be to close and sell Station 2 on Rippburger Road and Station 4 on Plank Road, and build new stations on Highland Avenue just east of Coombs Road, and on Dittman Road about one-third mile south of Plato Road. The land on Dittman Road was purchased earlier this year.

The board was scheduled to discuss Tuesday night placing the referendum question on the April 2 ballot with a lower amount of $6.5 million, with the rest of the money, or $2 million, coming from reserves, Fire Chief Mitch Crocetti said.

Crocetti and board members supportive of the original plan say it’s about optimal locations for fire stations based on response times, increase in calls for service, and population growth. The chief said there are inaccuracies in the estimate obtained by Harris, such as the acreage needed for one of the new fire stations.

Board President John Payson said his main objection to keeping Station 4 in its current location is that it will be poorly positioned to serve district residents, particularly as Elgin continues to build westward.

The district, which has a $3.6 million budget, currently employs five full-time firefighters/paramedics and 38 on-call or part-time firefighters. Several firefighters left this year, many to take full-time positions, and they are recruiting to replace open positions.

For the third consecutive time voters rejected a request from the Pingree Grove & Countryside Fire District to approve borrowing $8.5 million to replace two of its three fire stations. Voters cast 2,910 no votes and 2,519 yes votes with all precincts reporting Tuesday, according to unofficial results.

The locations for the stations would have yielded better response times, particularly as the district grows, Fire Chief Mitch Crocetti said.

The district had already purchased land on Dittman Road to build one of the stations.

Fire officials in Pingree Grove are taking another stab at asking voters permission to borrow $8.5 million to build two new fire stations, which they say will be better positioned to serve a growing population.

A “yes” to the referendum question on the ballot March 20 would yield a property tax increase of about $90 for a house with a $300,000 market value, Fire Chief Mitch Crocetti said. That’s $27 less than the tax increase projected last year, because the district has grown since voters rejected the proposal in April 2017, he said.

The Pingree Grove & Countryside Fire Protection District would repay the bonds over 20 years with $2 million from its general fund — at the rate of $100,000 per year — and $6.5 million with the property tax increase that would expire after two decades, Crocetti said.

The district employs 54 firefighters who responded to 1,096 calls in 2017, up from 1,036 calls in 2016. The 50-square-mile district serves about 15,000 residents in Pingree Grove, the north end of Campton Hills, and unincorporated areas. More residences are expected to be built in Cambridge Lakes subdivisions.

The district has three fire stations, two of which — Station 2 on Rippburger Road and Station 4 on Plank Road — are outdated and would be closed and sold if the two new facilities are built.

Station 2 is unstaffed and Station 4 has trailers for firefighters. “They were built as callback stations, they were never intended to be lived in,” he said. The stations are landlocked, but even if they could be upgraded, they are in the wrong spot geographically, he said.

The two new stations, which would have living quarters for firefighters, would be built on land to be purchased on Highland Avenue just east of Coombs Road, and on Dittman Road about ? mile south of Plato Road. The district has earmarked about $600,000 in this year’s $3.3 million budget to buy property and commission architectural plans.

A majority of voters said no to two new fire stations in a referendum question in Tuesday’s election asking permission to borrow $8.5 million for construction in the Pingree Grove and Countryside Fire Protection District.

There were 859 “no” votes and 608 “yes” votes, with all 16 precincts reporting in Kane County, according to unofficial results.

Fire Chief Mitch Crocetti said the district wanted to be better positioned geographically to reduce response times for an increasing population. The district has three fire stations, one of which — Station 4 on Plank Road — would have been closed and sold if the two new ones were built.

The 20-year property tax increase would have amounted to about $117 per year for a house valued at $300,000.

The 50-square-mile district serves about 15,000 residents in Pingree Grove, the northern end of Campton Hills, and unincorporated areas.

The two new fire stations would have been built in the vicinity of Plato and Rippburger roads, and on Highland Avenue just east of Coombs Road.

The Pingree Grove and Countryside Fire Protection District will have a referendum on the ballot April 4 asking voters permission to borrow $8.5 million to build two new fire stations.

The goal is to be better positioned geographically to reduce response times for an increasing population, Fire Chief Mitch Crocetti said.

The district has three fire stations, one of which — Station 4 on Plank Road — would be closed and sold if the two new ones are built.

The district would repay the bonds with $2 million out of its general fund and $6.5 million with a 20-year property tax increase that would amount to about $117 per year for a house valued at $300,000.

The 50-square-mile district serves about 15,000 residents in Pingree Grove, the northern end of Campton Hills, and unincorporated areas.

Pingree Grove officials said it has added about 300 new housing units per year the last several years.

The two new fire stations would be built in the vicinity of Plato and Rippburger roads, and on Highland Avenue just east of Coombs Road. The locations were picked based on the largest population centers within the fire district boundaries, which originally were set in 1957 and later extended east.

“For us to get to the far southwest part of our distinct, south of Burlington Road toward McDonald Road, it takes about 11 or 12 minutes on a good day, without snow or other conditions,” he said. “(With the new stations), we are shooting for an average response time of six minutes. That’s the standard for EMS (emergency medical services).”

This would be the first bond issue for the district, which employs 54 firefighters who responded to 1,090 calls last year. Its annual budget is about $3 million per year; the district saved up for nine years and paid cash to build the fire station that opened in 2015.

Its newest fire station was built in 2015, replacing Station 1 that was sold for about $160,000 to Anchor Spa & Pool Inc..

If voters approve the April 4 referendum question, the new property tax would show up on tax bills in June 2018.

Crocetti said the district’s assessed property value has grown steadily the last three or four years. If that continues, the added property tax might be lower than $117.